I'm_All_NEET:3What do you like most about the Christmas season?
MelodiousFunkMy favorite part is when it’s over and all the fake cheer dissolves.
BrekkyI started to downvote you, but it’s an honest answer, so I stopped. But I can’t bring myself to upvote you either ʘ‿ʘ
I feel this. I have a really hard time with holidays and i hate the media portrayal that it’s a beautiful day for everyone. Abuse, neglect, illness, and everything else continues regardless of the calendar. This will be my second Christmas without my mom. I keep thinking of all the things she did over the years to make Christmas nice for me and it’s made me want to participate a little more this year.
absGeekNZI get this, after working retail as a teen/early 20’s. I hated the music, the commercial nature of everything, the fakeness of it all. As a special extra, for those in the southern hemisphere “traditional” Christmas food is so dumb here.
But you know what “cured” me of this. My kids, they are what it’s all about, they love the songs and gifts, time with us. Lake days and sun… its all wonderful to them.
I’m not cristian, so idk if this counts but I really like all the festive vegan food options that have started being sold in the supermarkets at this time of year. They’ve gotten really quite good in the last half decade or so!
Interstellar_1I like having slightly more free time.
Easier to shoplift since there’s so many people distracting the employees.
(/jk I don’t shoplift, but I just noticed how vulnerable stores are when its busy)
oh yeah this definitely counts against the good things about christmas :D I live in a relatively rich part of Italy where shoplifting is very rare, and if you’re not wearing “suspicious” clothes (eg. clothes that might suggest that you’re poor), if the store is crowded and the staff is busy and you make the anti-theft sensors ring while crossing them, they likely won’t even question why they are ringing and just assume an anti-theft tag wasn’t properly removed during checkout. lol
Countess425I found out a few Christmases ago that I really love gingerbread houses. I used to build scale models in grad school and got really into it. Gingerbread houses are like that but without grades or measuring. My weekend plans are to order trash pizza, put on Home Alone, drink some weed sodas, and decorate gingerbread houses til I’m too stoned to hold a piping bag.
I also love that it is cold and I can snuggle my husband to suck up his warmth and make him yell when I touch him with my cold toes. 😈
DessalinesMaking gingerbread houses is so much fun… we’re still at the level of just copying from gingerbread house youtubers, but its a fun day putting on xmas music and making them.
jecxjoMy favorite things is January 2nd
What happens on January 2nd?
ZachariahJanuary 2nd.
Fair enough.
all the holiday bullshit is over. no more traveling during the most dangerous weather of the year. no more seeing a ton of people out of obligation. no more shoving bronze age blood cult nonsense that just normalizes a beliefe system that promoted patriarchy, racism, misogyny and fear.
Actually though, right after new years is about when my seasonal depression turns back into regular depression
Elaine CortezThe darker nights, the Christmas music, giving others presents and receiving presents from people, and having an excellent excuse to eat huge amounts of chocolate!
StalinwolfMainly the nostalgia of it. The familiar peaceful Christmas hymns and the way Christmas lights reflect against soft snow. My spirit drifts somewhere between commercial Christmas and Yule.
lololaHanging out with family. Making the same baking my stepmom made. Unscheduled time.
Lots of free time due to me taking at least 2 weeks vacation at the end of the year. Visiting family and giving each other presents. Baking cookies with friends. Going to the Christmas market. Decorating. Eating gingerbread. The whole end of the year let’s have a good time vibe.
Call me Lenny/LeniNot really any of the aspects, but if I had to choose, the weather.
Seeing how excited my kids get. If it wasn’t for that, it’s just an extra busy time of year.
Cinnamon. Cinnamon everywhere in all the dishes.
That it ends.
The amount of social needless obligations is just annoying to me.
Snuggling up in a comfy blanket is nice tho.
Snuggling up in a comfy blanket is nice tho.
It’s when we watch Lord Of The Rings.
Leftovers. Making sandwiches/tacos with leftover pork and chicken makes the 25th and 26th the two best days of the year, honestly.
The lights and giving gifts. My own christmas tree and lights up on people houses or businesses. It almost makes the early nights of winter worth it. Giving gifts is an art form for me. I alternate between hand making, scouring stores, and gift cards so I can invest as much time as I want each year.
Food
The NYE party/vacation, and the xmas dinner with the extended family. Basically the only two things I like about december. Everything else is just a giant marketing campaign or an excuse to cover up how alienated and cynical the western world is
The decorations are nice. Haven’t really been in the Christmas mood since 2018 but I love seeing the lights outside
CamilleMariah Carey. All I want for Christmas is you is one of my comfort songs, it reminds me of so good memories. Sorry guys, I’m this person who listens to it unironically every year
tetris11Love you too ❤️ Merry Christmas !
Same. I voluntarily listen to Christmas music all the time between our Christmas parade in late November and Christmas Day. And it always starts with Mariah, that’s the signature tune.
We are really the same
Sir_KevinDie Hard.
onlookerThat it only comes once a year?
The atmosphere in the air. Offices get quieter and shopping malls get merrier (assuming no crying children or arguing parents)
Drinking, smoking, eating, trying to forget my ex, more drinking, etc.
It’s like a regular work day, but coffee is swapped with gin, and keyboards are switched with cigarillos
Kindness towards others. Yeah there’s crappy humanity stuff like black Friday, but generally the holiday brings out more good than bad in people.
JustVikI like that most people become kinder at Christmas.
In the southern hemisphere? Summer.
It’s the best time of year, amazing weather, long days, warm nights.
NexySome people are more happy this days, that’s good. But that’s all for me.
Im going to agree with most that people who are into it put more effort into being cordial, next would be food and treats, then decorations, then sales so its oftentimes a good time to pick up something you need. I hate gift giving as an obligation though. I love when I can give something to someone because I saw something that really fits them and is relevant and that makes it so worth it. I hate a gift being given because its a time of year and reciprocity and such so it ends up being something to go to a land fill or such. When in such a position I tend to try and buy food or alcohol in the hopes it won't be a total waste. White elephants can be fun when its limited to actual found items and I think oftentimes it actually ends up rescuing something from a landfill.
The music.
Brenda lee, nat king cole, sinatra, harry belafonte, all made some incredible xmas albums. I play piano, and there are so many great jazz christmas books too.
Yes! Nat King Cole is my jam.
Time.
My wife is a school teacher and I’m an engineer at a place that shuts down from Christmas through new years. I absolutely love having no schedule and just waking up every day with the kids and figuring out who were going to see and how were going to spend our time. It’s an absolute luxury and I love it so much.
BakkodaSame. We have a lot of little shutdowns leading up to Xmas (Thanksgiving, off-site Holiday party etc) plus the Xmas shutdown. I’ve worked like 40 hours since Thanksgiving and it’s been glorious.
Family. I’m very lucky to have a good one. I grew up with parents who moved away from their families before I was born, but we always traveled back - once in the summer, and then again for Christmas. Despite living a ways away, I had great relationships with my grandparents, cousins, etc.
Then it was my turn to move away. I’ll be home for Christmas. :)
LastI get to pretend for a little while that things are OK. All of the songs are really happy. I think I get wrapped up in the nostalgia and remember being a kid.
The food. Tamales hit different around Christmas for me, New Year’s is menudo/pozole. I also can’t get enough of Christmas cookies.